Burglary At Auto Shop Solved

Payson Police Commander Don Engler is praising detective Matt Van Camp for his efforts in solving a Feb. 11 burglary of Wicks Auto Service on Main Street.

"He's the one that picked this up, got the information and put it all together," Engler said.

Van Camp was able to piece together details about the Feb. 11 burglary that led to the arrest of John Carl Martin, 23, of Beaver Valley. Martin has been charged with three counts of burglary and one count of theft.

According to Engler, a felony complaint is pending for Martin's alleged accomplice, 23-year-old Robert Andrew of Payson.

Andrew was interviewed by police March 10 and released until the complaint is issued.

Engler said he expected that to occur soon.

Following Martin's arrest the same day, he was booked into Payson Gila County jail.

He was later transferred to the Globe Gila County jail where he is still being held.

According to Engler, during Van Camp's investigation he was able to develop leads that pointed to Martin -- who had worked as a service advisor at Wicks Auto Service for about two months --nd Andrew as suspects.

Wicks said he trusted Martin and was taken aback by the theft.

"It's a sad state of affairs in our town when something like this happens," Wicks said. "When John worked for me, I would have done about anything to help him out."

According to Engler, Wicks' cooperation also played a huge role in solving the crime.

"The victim was a big help in providing leads," he said.

Police believe the suspects broke into the garage by forcing their way though a rear door. Police reported that the two stole an undisclosed sum of money and broke into two cars inside the garage.